Ironing aid



H. N. QUOSS Nov. 7, 1961 IRONING AID Filed Dec. 11, 1958 I mum INVENTORHenry N. Quoss ATTORNEY United States Patent Ofilice 3,007,192 PatentedNov. 7, 1961 3,007,192 IRONING AID Henry N. Quoss, 2124 ClearviewCircle, Dallas 24, Tex. Filed Dec. 11, 1958, Ser. No. 779,652 1 Claim.(Cl. -561) This invention relates to fountain type sponges, or the like,and it has particular reference to devices which combine a waterabsorbent material, such as a sponge, with a water container whereby thesponge can be maintained in a moist condition.

An object of the invention resides in the provision of a water containerwhich has a suitable handle and to which is permanently attached asponge having one of its faces applied to the container in such a manneras to absorb water dispensed therefrom through a plurality of orificesin one face of the container, such orifices being of a size calculatedto dispense water in relatively small quantities thus preventing thesponge from becoming water-logged or soaked.

A prime object of the invention is that of providing a device havingpeculiar adaptation for dampening cloth for ironing in which operationsit is desirable to apply moisture sparingly to avoid over wetting thegarment to be ironed.

It is well known that fabrics should be moist when ironed and theconventional practice is to lightly sprinkle the garment with water andfold or roll the same for a brief period before ironing in order thatits dampness can be as uniform as possible, but this practice is notalways entirely satisfactory because the sprinkling process often failsto impregnate all portions of the garment resulting in dryness in spotswhich do not respond satisfactorily to the hot iron.

An object of the invention, therefore, is that of providing a device bywhich the dry spots, which will invariably occur after the usualsprinkling process, can be uniformly moistened to a proper degree sothat ironing can proceed uninterrupted in a uniform manner and thegarment will have no wrinkled or rough spots.

A further object of the invention resides in the provision of a deviceof the character described in which the water-discharge orifices haveexpanded outlets, or recesses formed in their outer ends, providingreceptacles in which the water can accumulate, soaking into the spongegradually rather than flowing out of the container in continuous streamsas would be the case if the outer dimension of the orifices was the sameas the inner dimension since the capillary attraction of the spongewould tend to withdraw the contents of the container more rapidly.

While the foregoing objects are paramount, other and lesser objects willbecome apparent as the description proceeds, taken in connection withthe appended drawings wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the invention showing a transparentwater container having a handle and having a sponge attached to itsunder surface.

FIGURE 2 is an end view of the invention.

FIGURE 3 is a top plan view showing a portion of the top broken away toillustrate the enlarged portion of one I of the orifices.

FIGURE 4 is a longitudinal sectional view on lines 4-4 of FIGURE 3illustrating the enlarged outlets of the orifices open to the sponge,and

FIGURE 5 is a fragmentary sectional illustration, on lines 55 of FIGURE3, showing the recess formed in one of the orifices in the outer surfaceof the bottom of the container.

The invention primarily comprises a container generally designated bythe numeral 1 and is preferably formed of a transparent plasticmaterial. A planar top 2 is provided for the container as well as aplanar bottom 3v and parallel sides 4 and ends 5 which are bondedtogether to form an integral unit, or molded as desired. A handle 6 isformed With the top 2 and extends from one end thereof. As illustratedin FIGURE 3 the handle 6 has a greater thickness than the top 2 and ashoulder 7 is ormed to engage the upper edge of one end Wall 5. When thecontainer is molded in a single unit the shoulder 7 can be eliminated.

The container 1 is provided with a closure plug 8 in the filler opening9 in the top 2 and the plug 8 may be formed with a suitable handle 10.'It is desirable that the container 1 be airtight to provide a vacuumtherein so that its water content cannot flow freely therefrom throughthe orifices 11, which have enlarged recesses 12 in their outlet ends,but only when the container is shaken to cause the water to be expelledin droplets formed in the recesses 12 to be absorbed by a sponge 13applied as by cementing to the under surface or bottom 3, as shown ingreater detail in FIGURE 4.

The cavities or recesses 12 may be of any desired shape, such asproviding a conical recess in the outer surface of the bottom 3 at eachorifice 11 instead of the enlarged bore shown particularly in FIGURES 4and 5. It is essential to the proper function of the invention to flarethe orifices 11 outwardly to form the recesses 12 to prevent the sponge13 from drawing the liquid out of the container 1 too rapidly. Thesponge 13 should not be saturated but maintained only in a moistenedstate so that its moisture content can be transmitted to the work inrelatively small quantities by gently tapping the fabric with thesponged surface of the container.

Although the invention has been described in detail, it is obvious thatcertain changes and modifications may be resorted to from time to time,in its structure and assembly of parts, without departing from thespirit and intent of the invention or the scope of the appended claim.

What is claimed is:

An applicator for use in moistening articles of cloth preparatory toironing them comprising a normally closed, relatively shallow receptaclehaving a planar top, a planar bottom, an elongated handle integral withthe top and extending horizontally beyond one of its ends, and a spongehaving planar top and bottom surfaces, and conforming generally to theshape of the receptacle, bonded to the under side of the bottom of thereceptacle the receptacle having a plurality of uniformly spacedrestricted orifices in its bottom, in opposed relation to the topsurface of the sponge, and having an opening in its top whereby thereceptacle may be filled with water, the arrangement being such that thereceptacle, with its handle, and the sponge, is capable of being,employed as a paddle, to beat the surface of an article of cloth wherebythe opposed surface of the cloth is moistened repeatedly as the spongeis brought in contact therewith, the orifices in the bottom of thereceptacle being progressively enlarged as they approach the under sidethereof, the receptacle having a closure for the opening in its top and,when closed, being substantially air tight whereby water may bedischarged from the orifices only upon shaking the receptacle.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 4Leger Aug. 3, 1926 Kurtz et a1. Jan. 29, 1935 Seeberger July 30, 1940Zimmerla Oct. 14, 1941 FOREIGN PATENTS Switzerland Aug. 1, 1955

